Relax, It's Just Another Day

Finding it hard to find a moment to relax in your daily life?  Our very fast paced lives seem to put us to where we go, go, go.  We get up, get the kids, drop them off at school, go to a meeting or two or three, return phone calls, emails, do reports, deadlines, deal with employees, more meetings, paperwork and the list goes on and on.  And every day you end up exhausted at the end of the evening.  Have you ever thought of taking a daily break during your day?  Most people would say no way to that question.  There's always too much to do.

Just like anything that you have scheduled through your day, you need to schedule a break.  Taking a break during your busy day can actually make you more productive. When we get overwhelmed and stressed with too much to do, we can actually become very counterproductive and do even less when trying to do more.  We can get unfocused and unproductive which puts us even further behind, which stresses us out more and the cycle continues.  So stop the cycle and take a break.  Even a five-minute break can decompress your mind and help you refocus.  Here's five easy break ideas:

1)  Talk a walk outside.  Step away from the desk/computer and enjoy the sunlight.

2)  Watch a meditation video.  Soothing Meditation by Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage
3)  Close your door and dance to your most favorite song and release that pent up energy.

4)  Do a few Yoga poses  OfficeBreakYoga.com
5)  Laugh!  Find something that makes you laugh outloud.  Evolution of Dance

For more information on Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage, please visit my website or follow me on Twitter.

Touch: Our Basic Need

I think we all know that we have five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, smell. Sometimes all these senses come into play for things such as eating. Sometimes we only use a few of these at a time like when we drive. We know that people can live their lives without sight, without sound, or a sense of smell. However, touch is a essential part of our human existence, our human need that we require to help sustain our lives.

Touch is a an often an unappreciated sense that can be excluded from our daily life. There is a quote I saw from Margaret Atwood's book The Blind Assassin: "Touch comes before sight, before speech. It's the first language and the last, and it always tells the truth." If you think about it touch is the first thing that happens when we are born and it's the first thing that new parents want to do: touch and hold their beautiful newborn. It has been proven that with premature and underweight babies that touch will help them grow and sustain life at alarming rates. And as parents, when our children are hurting through either physical or emotional pain, again what do we want to do? Touch and hold them and make it all go away.

Many people do go without touch on a daily basis which to me is a sad thing. I used to have a client that would get massaged just to be touched. For whatever reasons this need was not met in her life so she found the way to get it met. It really did sadden me that she didn't have this basic need met enough in her daily life. I know for me, I'm what would be called a touchy-feely person. Besides what I do for a living of massaging and touching people, I am always touching my friends when I talk or when I see or leave them through hugs and kisses. Personally this is my biggest sense that I like to have full-filled and that's probably why I am so touchy-feely. Touch evokes emotions. It evokes feelings and communication through pleasure, through pain, through sensuality. It is a basic form of human interaction no matter what race, nationality or language that you are. Touch brings us all together.

For more information on Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage, please visit my website or follow me on Twitter.

The Self-Indulgence of Massage

Do you feeling guilty about getting a massage? Does it seem self-indulgent and selfish? Massage actually has many important benefits to your physical and mental health. It can help you maintain your emotional, mental and physical well-being, especially when it is part of your health plan. It addresses a variety of health conditions, with stress-related tension being the most common. Massage therapy offers a natural, non-invasive, drug-free and humanistic approach based on the body’s natural ability to heal itself.

Benefits of Massage

• Relaxing: Massage calms the nervous system and promotes a sense of peace.
• Soothing: Massage eases tension and anxiety.
• Healing: Massage stimulates the lymphatic system, which carries away the body’s waste products.
• Improves breathing: Massage calms the body as a whole, which in turn quiets the lungs into its more natural state of breathing.
• Improves circulation: Massage improves blood circulation which delivers oxygen and nutrients to the cells.
• Eases tension, stiffness and pain: Massage prevents and relieves muscle cramps and spasms.

For more information on Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage, please visit my website

Are you Drinking Enough?

How do you know if you are drinking enough water? "A good test is to look at your urine," points out Cleveland Clinic nutritionist Andrea Dunn. "If it’s clear or pale yellow, you’re doing a good job of staying hydrated. But if it’s intense yellow or gold, you probably need to drink more water."

But not everyone likes water. Many people prefer soft drinks, fruit juices, sports drinks, coffee and other drinks. All these drinks can help quench your body’s thirst for fluids, but they typically contain 100 calories or more per serving. "The best alternatives to water are diluted fruit juices, and non-fat or skim milk" explains Ms. Dunn. "But these drinks shouldn't supplant water. Take note of how much sugar is in these alternatives. Sugar slows down the rate at which fluid is absorbed into the body. If you have trouble drinking water because you don’t like the taste, try adding a twist of lemon or lime or a splash of fruit juice. And cold water tastes better."

Ms. Dunn notes that while bottled waters are very popular, tap water works just as well and is more economical. It's also safe. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates tap water and requires that it be analyzed for chemicals and bacteria. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates bottled water, doesn't require that it be analyzed for these substances. In addition to water and other drinks, many foods are also good sources of water. Juicy fruits like oranges, grapefruit, grapes, watermelon and apples can help keep you healthy and hydrated. Carrots, tomatoes, tuna, yogurt, cottage cheese, soups, rice and pasta also contain plenty of water.

"The key is to think and drink small amounts," suggests Dunn. "The easiest way to stay hydrated is to drink a half-a-cup of water (four ounces) each hour you’re awake. When you get in the car, take along something to drink. When you sit down to watch TV, have something to drink. When you go to a meeting, take along something to drink." All the little sips will add up at the end of the day.

For more information on Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage, please visit my website.

Are you Dehydrated?

Is water really necessary? Almost everyone knows that you should drink eight glasses of water a day. Cleveland Clinic nutritionist Andrea Dunn says, "Absolutely. Almost every cell in your body needs water to function properly. Many of the patients I see don’t drink enough water. They aren't dehydrated, but they aren't drinking as much water as they should -- especially considering how much your body needs."

The human body, which is made up of between 55 and 75 percent water (lean people have more water in their bodies because muscle holds more water than fat), is in need of constant water replenishment. Consider this: Your lungs expel between two and four cups of water each day through normal breathing - even more on a cold day. If your feet sweat, there goes another cup of water. If you make half a dozen trips to the bathroom during the day, that's six cups of water. If you perspire, you expel about two cups of water (which doesn't include exercise-induced perspiration).

Ms. Dunn points out that a person would have to lose 10 percent of her body weight in fluids to be considered dehydrated, but as little as two percent can affect athletic performance, cause tiredness and dull critical thinking abilities. Adequate water consumption can help lessen the chance of kidney stones, keep joints lubricated, prevent and lessen the severity of colds and flu and help prevent constipation. "I encourage patients to drink eight to 10 cups of water each day. Those who do report that they generally feel better," notes Ms. Dunn.

For more information on Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage, please visit my website.

Stimulating Your Energy Through Breath

Recently I came across an article on Dr. Andrew Weil's website about breathing techniques. His article lists three different types of breathing exercises for either relaxing or energizing your body. I personally have tried various kinds of breathing for meditation, relaxation, or even to increase the oxygen in my body and energize my body in place of reaching for my favorite caffeine fix. Now don't get me wrong, if I can have a great cup of Newhall Coffee, I will. However like most people I do realize that most of the time I can't drink coffee late in the day or my already erratic sleep habits get even worse.

The main breathing exercise I want to write about is the Stimulating Breath. This technique is specifically aimed at raising your energy as well as your alertness and it really is very simple. If it is done correctly you should feel invigorated. I have done this in the past and will admit you look a little silly doing it, so it is not something you want to be walking your office halls trying to do. However, it does work. Here are his steps:

- Inhale and exhale rapidly through your nose, keeping your mouth closed but relaxed. Your breaths in and out should be equal in duration, but as short as possible. This is a noisy breathing exercise.

- Try for three in-and-out breath cycles per second. This produces a quick movement of the diaphragm, suggesting a bellows. Breathe normally after each cycle.

- Do not do for more than 15 seconds on your first try. Each time you practice the Stimulating Breath, you can increase your time by five seconds or so, until you reach a full minute.

Soothing Meditation

I decided that I wanted to create a guided meditation and put it on YouTube and Facebook. This was just because it seems to go along with massage...quieting the mind. The idea was to take a few minutes during your busy day and refocus, relax and quite the mind. And then whenever you needed a quick break to de-stress you could watch it over and over.

I had the idea of how I wanted it the meditation to look and I had a simple program on my computer that I had never used before. Luckily, I'm pretty computer savvy and was able to figure out the program quickly, it just took some time to piece it together and to get the timing in shape. So after playing around with it and figuring out the pictures, the written content and the timing it's completed. I had fun creating it and will probably do more things in the future. Most of the pictures in the video are ones I took, with a few taken by a friend on a vacation we took to Turkey. I hope you enjoy it and please pass it on to all your friends. :)

No Arms, No Legs, No Worries Part 3

Last of the three part series. I hope you have enjoyed Nick's video's and have learned something as I just wanted to share. If anything it should remind us to keep moving and even though we may look different that we all still have a lot of the same 'issues' and how other people or even ourselves stop us from moving forward.

No Arms, No Legs, No Worries

Today I came across a video of an amazing man named Nick Vujicic, a man born without arms and legs yet as he puts it also without limits. This first part of a three-part series is rather funny and I plan on sharing each series separately with little input from me on the blog. I think his video and his words can convey much more then I can.
As I said part one is rather humorous and I think the message is to not take ourselves so seriously and enjoy who and what we are. I hope you enjoy the video as I much as I have! Feel free to post any comments, too.

Employee Work-Life Balance

According to the world's largest human-resource-management association, 14% of employers worldwide offered massage therapy to employees, per a study conducted in 2006. To quote "Massage therapy is a great health-maintenance tool that aids in stress reduction. This is especially beneficial for employees who work in a very stressful work environment." said a report done by The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). This information about massage ran in the reported section titled "Work-Life Balance Benefits", which also included other benefits such as postal and dry-cleaning services, meal preparation, legal assistance and travel planning services.

For more information on Heavenly Healing Mobile Massage, please visit my website.

De-Stress through Breathe

Every moment of the day we breathe without a thought to it even happening, mostly taking this life-sustaining process for granted. We breathe roughly 23,000 times a day and take in about 4,500 gallons of air - 25 times that amount when we exercise. That's a lot of air! There are three types of ways that we breath: nasal, chest and belly breathers. Nasal breathers breathe in through the nasal and do not use the diaphragm to breathe. Chest breathers breathe only into their chest using a slight portion of the diaphragm to breathe. And belly breathers breathe into their bellies and use the full diaphragm to breathe. The diaphragm is important in getting oxygen into your body to feed the whole body with this vital life-sustaining ingredient. Take a few breaths and figure out which one you are? The best type of breather is the belly breather as it allows you to have a balanced breathing rhythm at a slow, smooth pace and helps keep you calm and peaceful. Breathing can help you calm down after an emotional, stressful or traumatic event. Notice how your breathing changes during these times, especially in anger...the breathe gets very rapid. When you change your breathing rhythms and habits your state of mind and emotions can change and become stabilized. This allows a more relaxed and at-ease body and mind. An easy simple exercise you can do to help de-stress at any time of the day is to put your hand on your belly. Take a deep breathe in through your nose, making sure that the belly expands. Bring in all the oxygen you can and slowly exhale through the nose. This simple breathing technique can bring you into balance at any time.

Massage is not just a Luxury!

Most people think massage is a luxury or pampering. They might think that it's something that only 'rich' people do or it's something to treat yourself to once a year or even less. Yet, most people are looking for ways to live a balanced life, to relax and reduce stress and that is exactly what a massage is about. Massage is a fantastic tool to include in your life to help you live in balance.

A massage is not about luxury... it's about re-charging your life, letting go, re-newing your body and mind into a peaceful place and learning how to take care of yourself. Massage is about your health: both your physical and your mental health. A massage doesn't just 'feel good' it helps your body recover from injuries, illnesses and of course stress. Massage has been proven by scientific research to be beneficial for many chronic conditions including:

• Low Back Pain
• Fatigue
• Headaches/Migraines
  
• High Blood Pressure
• Depression and Anxiety
  
• Strengthens the Immune System
• Relieve Stress

It also helps reduce recovery time for many medical conditions such as:

• Arthritis
  
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
• Fibromyalgia
• Asthma and Bronchitis
• Insomnia
• TMJ

When you think of massage in this way, it helps eliminate the thought that it's a luxury or a pampering moment. Now you can see that benefits of massage and the medical benefits that it can and will have for both your mind and body. Again, massage is a fantastic tool to include in your life to help you live in balance.